Pin-tailed Sandgrouse (Pterocles alchata)

Tejo Internacional NP, Portugal

During recent months, this was one of the species I spent some time photographing. The Pin-tailed Sandgrouse is one of the rarest and most beautiful birds nidifying in Portugal. Lack of knowledge about the nidification of these Sandgrouses – rediscovered about a decade ago – in our country is mainly due to the extremely low number of couples (probably less than ten) and the fact that they inhabit a remote area, scarcely visited by ornithologists. This is certainly not the technically best image I captured, but I chose it to show both male and female, in a way that greatly pleases me.

Nikon D3s + Nikon 500mm f4 VR + Nikon TC-14E II (=700mm)

iso 500, 1/500, f5.6

White Stork (Ciconia ciconia)

Zambujeira do Mar, Sudoeste Alentejano e Costa Vicentina NP

The White Stork is undoubtedly one of the species of birds that I most enjoy photographing. Besides the emotional aspects that could be expected for someone who worked with these birds for almost two decades, the White Stork has everything a photographer may wish for: it is common, trusting, very eclectic as to the habitats it frequents and the places where it builds nests, and photogenic. To photograph it in environments such as the ones, in the beautiful landscapes to be found in the south western coast of Alentejo and the Vicentino plateau, is a real pleasure.

Nikon D300 + Nikon 500mm f4 VR
iso 400, 1/800, f14